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Prince William will make his first appearance as a senior royal this week at a special ceremony at Buckingham Palace. Sources say the Prince is rather nervous but has been practicing so he doesn't make any mistakes.

One of his duties includes knighting several people with a sword, much as his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, does on occasion. William has never worked with a sword and has apparently been practicing.

"William has been practicing using the sword and pinning the medals on a servant so that he gets it right," a royal insider told The Daily Mail. "He obviously doesn't want to slice anyone's ear off or stick a pin into their chest. Above all, he realizes this is the biggest day in the lives of some people who are being honored, and he wants it to go well for them."

William left the Royal Air Force Search and Rescue team in order to take on a more official royal role. He and wife Kate have moved into Kensington Palace to be closer to the royal family and allow William to continually take on more roles. This will be his first official duty as a senior royal, and it's one the Prince is looking forward to.

"The Prince was always going to start doing more royal duties," a source added," but he wants to add them in slowly and do each one well without rushing into things."

This is one event that Prince William will likely be doing more often, seeing as how his grandmother is 87 years old and suffers from sciatica. It's become more difficult for her to withstand the ceremony, which requires her to be on her feet for at least an hour and use a sword.

"It is quite a strenuous exercise to hand out the medals without mistakes, engage people in conversation and to keep bending down. The Queen has done it without complaint for years but she is now 87 and she will be delighted that William is stepping up to support her by taking on some of her duties," an insider revealed.